In the Nursery with Rachel Blumenthal

We’ll be honest, we couldn’t wait to see Rachel Blumenthal’s nursery. Let’s just say Rachel has a knack for selecting the best of the best. After all, with Rachel being the CEO and founder of Cricket’s Circle, it’s literally her job! If you haven’t heard of Cricket’s Circle, you definitely want to check it out. It takes on the overwhelming task of sifting through the oh-so-many baby and toddler products out there and narrowing them down to a select group you can count on. So when you are an anxious new parent trying to decide which high chair your baby really needs, you can pick from a group of three rather than fifty. So you can understand why we were excited to see what Rachel chose to use in her own daughter’s nursery. We think you’ll love her daughter Gemma’s sophisticated nursery, and Rachel’s take on designing it.

Tell us a little about yourself.I’m a former fashion publicist (I began my career at Yves Saint Laurent) turned accidental entrepreneur. Following YSL, I was the designer and founder of the fashion jewelry brand Rachel Leigh, which after a few short years was available worldwide in over 300 high-end retailers and named one of Oprah’s “Favorite Things.” The brand was licensed to GlamHouse in 2011. I then went on to lend my hand to Warby Parker, which was cofounded by my husband Neil. When Warby—and our son, Griffin—were up and running, I launched Cricket’s Circle. I live in Greenwich Village with my husband and two kids and am a proud and active supporter of Baby Buggy.

Because of my job, I have personally tested almost every item on our website. Because of that, I am a very picky and practical customer. I am always looking for the highly functional items that are exceptionally special but not fussy and are ideally organic. That’s a tall order.

Tell us about your design process. Did you start with one central item or idea that served as your inspiration?I started with an image I found online as we were doing a High/Low story for Cricket’s Circle. I fell in love with a general vibe of the room but wasn’t sure how to execute it. I dug around for the crib that was in the space, but it was a design Nursery Works had discontinued. Fortunately Dwell Studio had recently launched a new collection, the Vanderbilt, which was a similar aesthetic. I then picked out the wallpaper, which is a pretty confident floral from Fornasetti.

From there, everything else had to be fairly simple. Gemma has a giant bookshelf in her room filled with an incredible library of books she’ll grow up reading and lots of fun leather bookends, colorful wood toys and a few special stuffed animals. My favorite piece in the room is a giant white leather giraffe, which I couldn’t help myself from buying for her the week after she was born, that completes the room.

What was the most important thing you wanted to achieve when creating this space?I knew I didn’t want my daughter’s room to be a predictable nursery (pale colors, pinks, wall appliqués, etc.). I also knew I wanted it to be sophisticated. I love that I was able to achieve a look that is appropriate for a baby girl but still a room that I would want to sleep in and could eventually transition into a guest room.

What is your favorite thing about the room?After learning how much time I spent in the glider with my son, I sprung for one with all the bells and whistles this time. I wanted one that not only fully reclined but also glided—when you’re rocking the baby to sleep, somehow you always fall asleep yourself before they do. I love sitting in the most incredible glider with Gemma and being among all the pretty touches that I chose for her.

What’s the first thing people notice when stepping foot into this room?The wallpaper—you can’t miss it. It’s a metallic gold with these incredible matte flowers on top in pastel lilac, ivory, burgundy and a hint of baby pink. It’s very sophisticated but has a bit of an edge and is still girly.

Did you have any unexpected obstacles when creating this room?Gemma’s room is pretty small, so while our baby nurse was with us, her crib, changing table, glider and the bed for the nurse didn’t all fit. Instead we used Halo’s Swivel Bassinest and then set up the crib when the nurse left. The bassinest was great because you could easily access it from the bed and it vibrates, which soothed her to sleep.

Beth, Project Nursery’s Editor, lives in Upstate New York with her husband and their two boys—an inquisitive seven-year-old and an imaginative four-year-old. Beth is a work-from-home mom who loves writing, crafting and all things kid design.